| Plague times and wind of putrefaction
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| Gutter belching rats by millions
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| Brutal wave of squeaking vermin
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| Babies devoured in their cradle
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| Rats seemed to come all from the same place
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| A putrid forgotten gutter’s bowel
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| And in the middle of the nest
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| Something as a crown
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| A crown made of rats all linked by the tail
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| One day a stranger came with odd tongue and red eyes
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| His little rat’s eyes were shining with malicious intelligence
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| Strangely looking
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| Breeding distrust
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| Covered with rats' furs
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| Greasy whiskers like rat’s tails over his buck-like yellow teeth
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| Deeply cold and malevolent hawking the plague message
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| Stench of death and gutter smell follow his ugly path
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| He seemed to be the only one not affected by the rats
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| Some said they saw him speak with rats
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| He who came from nowhere
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| Soon people asked for help to him
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| Ready to give the few they had
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| The deal was clear he would get out the rats for free
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| The condition is that he takes one child with him
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| But none of the yokels wanted any child to sacrifice
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| They decided another way to break the deal and never pay
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| «Just let him kill the rats and we won’t give anyone…»
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| They said «agreed» and gave him their word
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| He looked at them and he promised at dawn rats would be gone…
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| At night the villager hardly slept bitten by remorse
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| Surrounded by the sound of his flute
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| Monotonous and sullen…
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| The stranger walked calmly
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| His music following him in the night
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| And the rats followed him near the lake
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| Gazing at his complaint…
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| Trustful they all understood and accepted what he silently said
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| The procession disappeared in the deep waters and none saw them again
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| And the morning after when he asked for the child
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| None wanted to give his son
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| Their plan was running on
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| The rats were gone but the villagers expelled him with no child
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| With the acid smile of betrayal on their hypocrite faces
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| At night a feeble melody of sick complaint pierced the silence
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| The stranger walked calmly surrounded by the sound of his flute
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| And all the children followed him near the lake
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| Gazing at his eyes
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| Trustful they all understood and accepted what he silently said
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| And the children broke the circle to walk to the silver lake
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| The procession disappeared in the deep waters and none saw them again |